Proposed as a symbol of great civic pride, Cleveland's voters approved of building Cleveland Municipal Stadium by a margin of 2-1 in November 1928. However, a series of lawsuits and newspaper articles soon revealed issues which soured the public view of the stadium. By the time the stadium formally opened on July 1, 1931, it was generally regarded as a mistake.

The Indians played in Cleveland Municipal Stadium from July 31, 1932 to September 24, 1933. After that, the Indians usually played only their Sunday and holiday games there until Bill Veeck finally moved all of the team's games to the massive facility in 1947. On September 12, 1954 against the Yankees, the Indians played in front of their largest crowd in history, 86,563. It was the largest crowd for any team until the Dodgers started playing in the Los Angeles Coliseum. For most of their years at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, however, the Indians fielded losing teams and attracted small crowds which contrasted with their enormous ballpark. The stadium was demolished in November 1996.